Tightening devices of the general type with which the invention is concerned comprise two, upstanding yoke-like shoulder members mounted on a turntable fastened to the upper surface of the ski. Pivotally connected to the shoulder members are two rigid arms, associated with a ski boot holding member comprising a sole holder and closing pedal assembly which is a supported between the arms. The holding member secures the heel of the ski boot in the binding, and is pivotal against the force of a trigger spring into an open, release position under conditions which makes release of the boot desirable. In its position of prospective use, the holding member is held spaced apart from the ski's upper surface by a support member attached to the lower part of the holding member and positionable between it and the ski, the support member bearing upon the top of the ski during times when a ski boot is not located in the binding.
Heel tightening devices of the type described have become popular for a variety of reasons, including the fact that rotation of the turntable assists in the emergency release of a boot from the binding, and such devices embody a number of design variations. In one design, for example, the rigid arms associated with the holding members are each loaded with a spring disposed thereon which bears against the turntable and helps to force the support member against the ski's upper surface, the objective being to provide a firm engagement therewith and thus avoid the objectionable movement or "play" associated with the transportation of skis on which such bindings are mounted.
Unfortunately, however, due to the presence of the required pivotable connections of the binding components, as well as the cumulative weight of the components attached to the shoulder members, the components tend to move about as the skis are carried, or when they are transported on an automobile. In the case of transportation on the roof of an automobile, for example, such movement can cause unintended and destructive imparts of the components with the automobile's roof. Even when skis with such bindings are simply being carried, however, the movement referred to can cause insecure and unpleasant sensations to the carrier thereof, all of which is undesirable.
In view of the foregoing therefore, it is an aspect of this invention to provide a ski binding of the type referred to in which the support member is made pivotal at its point of connection with the holding member, about an axis parallel to the pivot axis of the rigid arms. Furthermore, the free end of the support member is provided with a hook-like structure, adapted for engagement with a projecting surface which may form part of the turntable. This construction allows the support members of skis not in use to be pivoted toward such surface and the hook to be engaged therewith so that the rigid arms and the holding member associated with the support member are effectively restrained in an immobilized position.
In another aspect of the invention described, it is desirable that the support member be provided with spring means adapted to force the support member into a supporting position so as to avoid any unintended pivoting thereof.
A further aspect of the invention is to provide a tightening device of the type described in which when the sole holder and closing pedal assembly can be locked in an immobilized position. In this condition, it is impossible for the support member to be inadvertently deployed into its holding member-supporting position. Likewise, in the binding's locked position, it is not possible for the assembly to be moved into its "closed" position, i.e., where the sole holder and closing pedal are positioned to secure the heel of a ski boot within the binding, as opposed to the binding's "open" position, where the boot is not so held.
Another aspect of the invention assures that when the assembly is secured in its locked position, it can be released therefrom merely by rotating the turntable to which it is connected by a relatively small amount, e.g., desirably no more than about one-third of the total arc through which the turntable is ordinarily rotatable.
An additional aspect of the invention is to provide the projecting surface with which the hook of the support member is engagable, or equivalent structure, with an inclined ramp, or abutment, on each side thereof. With such a design, the hook can be readily released from the projecting surface merely by rotating the turntable in either direction, thereby causing the hook to ride upwardly on one of the ramps to an elevation at which it is no longer engaged with the projecting surface.
A still further aspect of the invention involves the provision of turntable centering means, for example, springs which cooperate with the turntable in order to return the latter to its original position following its displacement therefrom, as for instance, in the hook-disengaging process.
Yet another aspect of this invention in those embodiments which include a bearing plate for the turntable, comprises the provision of a radial lug extending from the plate which serves as a bearing surface for the free end of the support member. Such a construction isolates the free end of the support member from the upper surface of the ski so as to avoid damage thereto.
Additional aspects of the invention will become apparent from the description thereof which appears in the following.